Feelings Renewed
by r0slyn
Summary: Byleth returns to the monastery cautious, hopeful and filthy after a five year slumber in the wild. Thankfully Claude's scheming nature keeps him prepared and he knows of a secluded spring she can use nearby. Feelings on both sides are reawakened as both realize those student/teacher boundaries are now gone.


**Hello! The characters and world and all that jazz belong to IntSys. Some of Claude's dialogue is taken word for word from the reunion at dawn cutscene. Credit for the name 'Ashen' for Claude's wyvern goes to Gyarii. I loved their reasoning for the name and am happy to change it if need be. That said, this hasn't been beta'd, but I'd love any and all reviews ya'll can give me. Critical reviews are much appreciated as I'm definitely an amatuer. Enjoy!**

"Hey lady, are you alright?" Echoes of a young girl's voice faded as consciousness returned to Byleth. She opened her eyes to find a man's face hovering over her, unfamiliar and unremarkable.

"Wha - legch.." Her throat, dry with disuse made it painful to speak. The unidentified man offered a waterskin and she gratefully (painfully) drank. "M'names Milf. I found you on the riverbank just now. Seems to me you've had a rough time of it. You have a run-in with bandits or somethin'?" She thought of Edelgard's reinforcements, the tipping point of the battle for Garrag Mach. Bandits indeed. "Uh, something like that."

Byleth quickly surveyed her surroundings expecting to see destruction in the wake of the Imperial army's advance. Her brows furrowed in confusion as she took everything in. The idyllic countryside farm on the outskirts of the village looked peaceful and completely intact, with no signs of recent destruction. Byleth rapidly made several connections at once. "What year is it?" she asked. "1185," Milf answered, nonplussed. "Ethereal Moon. Today was s'posed the be the millennium celebration actually, but who has time to celebrate in the middle of a war? Are you sure you don't need any help?" Byleth gave the man a small smile. She could tell he was kind, if a bit confused by her appearance and she appreciated the fact that she hadn't regained consciousness in the company of enemies.

"No, thank you," said Byleth. If today was the millennium celebration, then all the help she needed would be at the monastery. "My students are waiting for me." This served to confuse poor Milf even more, and guessing that she was heading for Garrag Mach, he shouted after her. "If you're going to the monastery, watch yourself! That place has been thief territory for years!"

* * *

Milf's warning was well informed. Byleth counted at least 12 separate thieves as she made her way through Garrag Mach. Thankfully her stealth skills were just as sharp as they had been before her fall, and she was able to make it up to the Goddess Tower without incident.

If anything, the tower would be a good vantage point from which to spot friend or foe, and she could take some time to collect her thoughts. _5 years._ _Why has Garrag Mach been abandoned? How complete was Edelgard's victory?_ Thoughts of her students and their fates threatened to distract her completely, but she needed to focus at least long enough to find sanctuary. Dawn had just broken when she ascended the last few steps.

The visage of a man greeted her. She almost dashed for cover, but the clothing was not that of a thief and as he turned to her, he seemed familiar. "You overslept Teach! Pretty rude to keep a fella waiting like that don't ya think?" _Teach?_ She searched his face again and a spark of recognition lit her eyes. _Claude!_ "What's with that surprised look, my friend? You didn't really think I'd given up on you coming back. Did you?"

Claude turned and looked confidently into the distance toward the rising sun. "Can you feel it? A new dawn is finally here. Not just for us though. No, for all of Fodlan." _Definitely Claude._ If any doubt remained as to his identity that dramatic aside cinched it. No one could blend theatricality with sincerity quite like he could.

"Claude," Byleth spoke his name as if he were home and she a weary traveler. In a way, she was. The last time she had seen Claude had apparently been years, but her memory insisted it was mere hours. She had left him a young man, brimming with potential and ambition. Now here he stood before her, and the evidence of those 5 years could not be denied. He was taller, broader in the shoulders, and wore the clothing of a high ranking Alliance noble. His braid was gone but a beard had appeared and she smiled at him. "You look well."

Claude pulled a leaf out of Byleth's hair and grinned. "So do you, foliage notwithstanding." Her smile turned wry at his comment, and Claude continued, "It's been five long years. Where have you been, Teach? You don't really expect me to believe that you've been napping this whole time, do you?" Jocularity gone, Byleth earnestly said "I _was_ sleeping."

"That's a good one Teach...Except, that's not your lying face. I guess I've got no choice but to believe you." Byleth sighed quietly as Claude continued. "You're not exactly normal to begin with, so it's not a huge stretch to imagine you sleeping for that long." Claude searched Byleth's face. "..Annnd this is where you say 'just kidding.' Right? If this is a rib, now's the time to fess up."

Byleth prickled a bit. Surely he knew her well enough to know that she wouldn't lie. Not about something like this. Then again, she could hardly believe it herself, and _she_ was the one who had gone through it. "It's the truth," Byleth said. She lowered her voice. "Sothis...somehow she saved me. _Preserved_ me, when I fell into the abyss."

Claude's eyebrows furrowed for a moment and then relaxed as he said, "I believe you." Byleth could see the gears turning in Claude's mind, as he took in the implications of what she had said. "But that would mean.. You don't know anything that happened after the battle for Garrag Mach." Claude looked to Byleth for confirmation and Byleth nodded. "I guess it's on me to catch you up."

* * *

Later, Claude and Byleth chatted as they ate.

"She's a beauty, Claude," Byleth said, looking up at Claude's wyvern perched on a nearby roof. "That she is," Claude agreed. "And a real sweetheart off the battlefield too. Just like you," Claude winked at Byleth. A chuckle escaped her and she asked "What's her name?"

"Ashen," Claude replied. Byleth wondered if he knew about her nickname as a mercenary.

A bug crawled out the top of Byleth's right boot and something occurred to her as she scrunched her nose and flicked the bug away. In her haste to get to Garrag Mach, she had failed to notice just how...dirty she was. There was soil caked in every open crease her clothing provided and she shuddered to think of what her hair might have been home to in the past 5 years.

"Claude.." Byleth began. "Do you think the sauna would have any soap left?" Claude's eyes scanned her appearance and Byleth tried not to blush. Try as she might to distract herself, she had noticed the differences 5 years had made not only on his body, but in the way he carried and expressed himself. Claude was a man in full now, and her previous attraction to him was only intensifying as they spent more time together.

Claude, assessing that she did, in fact, need a bath, spoke. "The thieves have likely used it all by now, but I've got some in my saddlebags you can use. There's a spring not too far from here that you should be able to use discreetly. I'll keep watch for you."

Byleth exhaled with relief and thanked Claude for his offer. Now that she had noticed her grimy state, she was acutely aware of it and eager to be clean.

After they finished their meal, Claude rummaged in his saddlebags presumably fetching the soap and washing materials Byleth would need. As he struck off into the forest nearby, she followed and kept an eye out for signs of danger as they walked.

The spring was well hidden, nestled in between two willow trees and a plethora of pines. Byleth smiled slightly as she looked around and turned to see Claude holding out a small pile of clothing, with soap on top. Surprised and slightly touched by his thoughtfulness, she said "I appreciate the gesture but your clothes won't fit me Claude. I can probably beat out most of the dust from mine."

Claude's hand went to his neck in a sheepish gesture as he said "They're uh, womens' clothes...I wasn't sure what state you might be in when you came, and the monastery wasn't going to be of help and anyway, you know me; A schemer's always got to be prepared."

He chuckled a bit awkwardly and it occurred to Byleth that Claude was _rambling_.

"Hopefully this is everything you need. I'm not an expert on ladies' attire." A light blush dusted his cheeks as he finished speaking.

Quickly, to assuage the awkwardness Claude was feeling, Byleth took the bundle with a smile and said. "I appreciate them. Thank you Claude." She set the clothes on a rock near the edge of the spring and turned to look at Claude expectantly.

Rapidly understanding Claude said "Right, so, I'll leave you to it. Shout if you need me, otherwise I'll be over there." He pointed to the base of a tree that was far enough away to allow her privacy, but still close enough to hear her should she need him.

...

Byleth allowed a pleased groan to leave her as she slipped into the spring. The water was clear and refreshing and exactly what she needed right now. Her muscle memory took over as she washed herself and she started to sift through her thoughts and feelings. Five years of war. It seemed she had her work cut out for her. Her and Claude both. She experienced a burst of admiration for him as she thought about all that he had been through while she slept.

Her gaze drifted over to him as she began to wet her hair. Claude was seated to the side of a tree, giving her a view of his profile. Though the braid was gone, a lock of hair still fell to the side of his face, adding to the artful mess that was Claude's hair. His jaw was now sharply defined by the slim beard he had grown, and the ends of 3 colored metal flasks poked out from beneath his tunic. She would not be surprised if they were filled with liquids that looked like water, but weren't.

Her thoughts now centered around Claude as she unabashedly studied him. Certainly, they were compatible. Even before this crazy nap of hers, their plans and ideas had often complemented each other on the battlefield, and they agreed on important topics like religion and politics. The bond between them had been put to the test multiple times, and each time they seemed only to come closer, trust deepening and creating a loyalty unlike any Byleth had ever experienced before.

On top of it all, Claude was a light in Byleth's life. His wit and sense of humor greatly amused Byleth, and she had often had to restrain herself in the past from openly laughing at his schemes. The close proximity the monastery provided had allowed a familiarity to bloom between them, and Byleth remembered struggling not to use Claude as a sounding board for _all_ her thoughts, not just those related to their battle strategies. Now that the student-teacher barrier was removed, Byleth didn't have to restrict her feelings so fiercely, and she wondered what the future would bring.

True to his word, everything Byleth needed for a fresh change of clothes was wrapped up in the bundle of clothing he had given her. The clothes were soft, freshly washed, and smelled faintly of pine needles. Fully dressed and attempting to detangle her hair, she approached Claude.

* * *

Footsteps sounded from the direction of the spring and Claude finally allowed himself to look at Byleth. Her pale skin almost glowed against the dark tunic and leggings he had brought, and her wet hair added an element of vulnerability that somehow made her all the more appealing. Better to speak before his thoughts ran away with his mouth. "All done, eh?"

Frowning slightly Byleth replied, "Not quite. My hair has always been particularly unmanageable and I've lost my hair tie." She froze as she finished speaking, as though she hadn't quite meant to be so candid with him. Immediately deciding to encourage her openness Claude jokingly responded. "I know a thing or two about unmanageable hair Teach-"

"Byleth. Call me Byleth, please." Her smile morphed into an earnest expression as she spoke. Claude raised his eyebrows. The request felt like an offer to associate with her in a different, and maybe more intimate, way. It would also erase the verbal reminder of the romantic barriers that existed 5 years ago, when 'Teach' was the most affectionate nickname Claude could get away with. A beautiful smile lit his face as he said "Byleth."

The rush he got was similar to when he uncovered a new secret, and he mentally shook his head. _I must really be hopeless if this is my reaction to just saying her_ name.

She returned his smile and as the moment stretched Claude decided to push his luck.

"I could...braid your hair for you, if you'd like?" Byleth's eyebrows rose in surprise and he unconsciously held his breath as we awaited her response.

"That would be…." _Wonderful. Surreal. Absolutely uncalled for._ "...appreciated." Quickly, lest she change her mind, he found a nearby stump, sat and beckoned her over. As she sat herself on the ground in front of the stump, and between his legs he pinched himself covertly to make absolutely sure this was not a dream.

Pain signals received, he deftly untangled the last knot in Byleth's hair. The color of her hair when wet was a greenish teal that stood out in contrast to his tanned hands.

His fingers worked swiftly and he was almost done when Byleth said "Why did you get rid of the braid?"

Claude hummed while he tied off the braid and answered as Byleth rotated to see his face.

"Everything had changed so much and so quickly that my life seemed almost split into the period before Edelgard's attack, and after. Early into the war I would look into the mirror and the braid would remind me of our time at the academy, back when everything was more or less peaceful. It wouldn't do to be distracted by thoughts of what _was_ in the middle of a war. To survive, I needed to adapt and grow into something new. So I gave my thanks to the past and quit braiding my hair. I did a pretty good job I think, at leaving the past behind. The only thing I couldn't truly move on from...was you."

Claude locked eyes with Byleth, and thought a blush was starting to bloom on her cheeks. A deer snorted nearby, startling a rabbit which ran through the underbrush right behind them, and the moment was thoroughly interrupted.

Later, as they were heading back to the Goddess Tower, Byleth took Claude's hand in both of hers, locked gazes with him and said, "Thank you. For not giving up on me. For...waiting for me. You once offered your unconditional loyalty to me and I'd like to do the same. Claude..no matter what happens in the future, regarding this war, or my origin or anything else, I am with you. Always." She sealed her promise with a kiss to Claude's cheek. "Also, I love the beard."


End file.
